News

New Institute Health Data Research UK Seeks First Research Partners

Published on: 2nd August 2017

Health Data Research UK (HDR UK), the UK’s new health and biomedical data science research institute, has today launched a funding call to attract research partners. Between five and seven substantive sites are sought in order to form the core of the new informatics institute.

Successful applicants will receive long-term funding awards and become part of a collaborative research community working together to deliver the institute’s priorities, as set out by HDR UK’s inaugural Director, Professor Andrew Morris. Professor Morris officially takes up HDR UK duties today, 1 August.

“My vision is to work across the UK to exploit the extraordinary capability of informatics and computational medicine to create a new type of research institute that leads the international agenda in health data science. By working in partnership with academia, NHS, Government, industry and the public, the Institute will be a scientific driving force for new knowledge through data, bringing benefits to medicine and society.”

This is the first phase of investment to establish HDR UK, with competitions to follow to build capacity under a Future Leaders Programme and to address targeted data research challenges by investing in additonal partnership sites.

HDR UK is a joint investment led by the MRC, together with the National Institute for Health Research (England), the Chief Scientist Office (Scotland), Health and Care Research Wales, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, the Economic and Social Research Council, the British Heart Foundation and Wellcome. Harnessing the power of the NHS and associated health and biomedical data in the UK, HDR UK will develop and apply the cutting edge informatics approaches needed to address the most pressing health research challenges facing patients and the public.